In 1675 the conflict led to a calamitous, all-out war. ![]() Known by the English as “King Philip,” the new leader ordered raids against the colonies after many of his men were executed for murdering a Punkapoag interpreter. Metacomet, son of Massasoit, knew his people had had enough, and was willing to fight back. If that was not enough, disease, spread by the newcomers, decimated the native population.Īfter enduring much oppression and injustice, a new leader rose to power among the Wampanoag. Little by little, the colonists of Plymouth, though indebted to the Wampanoag, took over their land, straining the locals’ way of life. Though it is true that initially the Plymouth settlers held rather good relations with the Wampanoag tribe-in fact, they had an official alliance against the French and other rivals-, this friendship eventually eroded. Native Americans were driven out of their land, hunted and virtually exterminated by the settlers during the centuries following the latter’s arrival, so it’s hardly surprising that the story surrounding Thanksgiving involves a bloody conflict. ![]() It is fairly well-documented that the English, and later Americans, didn’t in fact get along with their native neighbors. Yet others believe Thanksgiving truly began when, in 1637, Massachusetts colony governor John Winthrop declared a day to give thanks for the fact that colonial soldiers had recently slaughtered over seven hundred members of the Pequot tribe, including women and children, in Connecticut. Decades before, some Spanish settlers in the colonies got together yearly with the Seloy tribe for a friendly feast. Other settlers in Virginia celebrated their arrival with an annual Thanksgiving day since 1619, for example. That sounds like a lovely story! But, it falls way short of showing the whole picture.Īs we mentioned before, celebrations meant to give thanks for the harvesting season (which mostly fall around the same dates) were plentiful and varied much before the pilgrim story, and it’s hard to pinpoint a single event as the actual birth of the contemporary version of the holiday. ![]() To celebrate their success and to honor each other, everyone got together and threw an affectionate feast in which the pilgrims showed their gratitude. Most schools teach that Thanksgiving was born when some English religious dissenters, the pilgrims, were struggling to settle in Plymouth and were warmly received by friendly, local Native Americans from the Wampanoag tribe, who taught them how to survive in the New World. More specifically, however, it is often said that the current American tradition of Thanksgiving dates back to the establishment of the Plymouth Colony in what today is Massachusetts, in 1620. The holiday has its earliest source in ancient customs found throughout the globe that allocated a day of giving thanks for a successful harvest and the fortunes or blessings of the previous year. The origins of Thanksgiving, like with most other traditional festivities, are rooted in old pagan rites. What many ignore, however, is that behind this seemingly joyous occasion lies a dark story full of conflict, blood, and genocide. We all know that Thanksgiving is an American holiday meant to celebrate and be grateful for our blessings and the friendship of others.
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